Order of the Magi
The Order of the Magi, or simply the Magi, are a loose alliance of wizards trained in the High Art of magic. High Art is the ability to change the world by drawing power from The Other Side, tempered by knowledge. All the Magi seem to have stopped aging, and are now centuries old. Using ones Art leaves the Magi exhausted, and in extreme cases can lead to black-outs. The Order was founded in the Old Time by Juvens, the first son of Euz, who took twelve apprentices and taught them the magical gift given to him by his father. The death of Juvens cause a schism in the order, with most of its members now following their own path. They still refer to each other as brother and sister, but there is little brotherly-love. There are some other magic users in the Circle of the World other than the Magi, such as Caurib (see Magic). History In the Old Time, some time after the founding of the Old Empire, Juvens took Bayaz as his first apprentice, and trained him in the principles of the High Art. Bayaz was still young and inexperienced at the time of the war with Glustrod. However soon afterwards, Juvens took a second apprentice, Khalul, a boy from Kanta. From the beginning the two argued, too proud and jealous of one another, even as Juvens took more apprentices; twelve in all. Juvens set down his knowledge of High Art in his one hundred volume ''Principles of Art; ''the very cornerstone of the Order of Magi. Once they earned their staff, each apprentice must read it and eventually make their own copy of the book. Only Juvens could master all the elements of High Art, so his apprentices tended to specialise. The only stricture he put on his apprentices was to obey Euz' two laws: The First Law, it is forbidden to touch The Other Side direct; and The Second Law, it is forbidden to eat the flesh of men. After the death of Juvens supposedly at the hands of his brother Kanedias, Bayaz gathered eleven of the twelve Magi to make war on the Master Maker; Khalul refused to come. The Magi lay siege to the House of the Maker, however all their Art could not bring down the doors. Eventually, Bayaz tried to convince his lover Tolomei, the Maker's daughter, to open the doors and the innocent girl agrees. The Magi fought Kanedias chamber by chamber. Anselmi and Brokentooth both met their end at the hands of the Maker, while Yulwei, Cawneil and Zacharus barely survived. In the end, Bayaz fought Kanedias alone high in the House, and both Kanedias and his daughter fell to their death. Thus ended the Old Times. Meanwhile, Khalul held Bayaz himself responsable for the death of Juvens, and swore vengeance, but he stood alone against many. So he made his great sacrifice, and with his first apprentice Mamun broke The Second Law and ate the flesh of men; thus becoming the first Eaters. He also founded the great Gurkish Empire which he has since dominated for centuries. As Khalul had done in Gurkhul, Bayaz helped King Harod to unite the chiefs of Midderland and founded The Union. While Khalul openly controlled Gurkhul through religion, Bayaz instead covertly controlled the Union through money and the Valint & Balk bank. The bitter rivalry between Khalul and Bayaz, now centuries old, continues. Since the death of the Master Maker, the other Magi have followed their own paths. Yulwei is the only of the original twelve apprentices to remain loyal to Bayaz, spying on Khalul in Gurkhul. Cawneil has isolated herself from the world in the Great Western Library. Zacharus seems to be trying to put himself on the level with Bayaz and Khalul by manipulating the Old Empire back to greatness. Leru and Karnault have simply vanished. In Sharp Ends, Javre mentions that she once escaped from an asylum or a prison for insane wizards. Some of the surviving Magi may be there. The Original Twelve Magi Other Apprentices Many of the original twelve Magi took apprentices for themselves. Some of these apprentices, such as Yoru Sulfur, have since earned their staff and become new members of the Order of Magi. It is not clear, but it seems one needs some kind of innate ability in order to study to become a Magi. Category:Magi Category:Organizations